Most studies agree that the cause of SIDS is likely the combination of innate predispositions in the infant and external factors that take advantage of the infant in its most vulnerable developmental stage. Recent medical research points to abnormalities in the serotonin levels of infants who have died from SIDS. While this research holds promising hope in the identification of inherent biological factors in SIDS victims, it does not explain why SIDS deaths occur more prevalently in gender and ethnic groups. Further, there is no discussion to address why more infants die from SIDS in winter months than summer months (northern hemisphere). Clearly, a solution is needed that considers both the innate predispositions to SIDS and the external factors simultaneously.
Presented herein is inventive subject matter which challenges the conventional way of thinking about SIDS. This inventive subject matter considers a multitude of factors, which together form a system that applies external Stochastic Resonance and Brownian Motion neurological stimuli to the infant. Application of Stochastic Resonance and Brownian Motion stimuli affects the voltage-dependent calcium channels and changes the threshold level at which neurotransmitters trigger. The overall result is increased bifurcations on the network of neurons resulting in higher Inter Spike Interval (ISI) frequencies. ISI frequencies increase in oscillation due to the phase following behavior of neurons.
During the Slow Wave Sleep (SWS) state, the infant's respiratory and heart rate are at their lowest and the homeostasis system is most challenged. It is during this sleep state that the infant faces the highest risk of SIDS. System embodiments disclosed herein reduce SIDS by the application of Stochastic Resonance and Brownian Motion as the infant sleeps.
Further, inventive subject matter disclosed herein discloses an explanation for the gender and ethnic disparities of SIDS. In particular, a particle called biogenic magnetite, which interacts with Earth's magnetic field, is known to exist in the human body. Biogenic magnetite aids neuronal excitations near the dendrites, resulting in the activation of more action potentials to fire. Biogenic magnetite is naturally higher in females than in males, which may explain why more male infants than female infants succumb to SIDS. Also, statistically fewer Asian and Caucasian infants die from SIDS than African American, Hispanic or Native American infants, regardless of socioeconomic status. The levels of the biogenic magnetite in the bodies of Asian and Caucasian infants may be higher than in African American, Hispanic, or Native American infants, which may explain the ethnicity gap in SIDS statistics.
The most critical link between the higher incidence of SIDS during winter months (compared to fewer SIDS deaths in the summer) relates to two environmental changes: 1) during winter months, the electromagnetic noise power density is lower than compared to summer months, and 2) Earth's natural resonance frequencies undergo electric and magnetic vector shifts due to the dawn-dusk asymmetry associated with the ionosphere D region layer on the day side of earth, and the disappearance of the D region layer on the night side. Although the electromagnetic noise power difference between a winter night and a summer day is small, it is the change in the phase vectors of the natural resonance frequencies (at the dawn-dusk delimiters) that have the most influence on neuron behavior. Accordingly, inventive subject matter includes a modified crib system which applies neurological stimuli to the infant during sleep. The applied stimuli mimic the natural electromagnetic noise power density that is associated with a typical summer day. The stimuli produces an increase in more neuron action potential to fire and affect the ISI frequencies. The higher oscillating frequencies enhance the autonomous and homeostasis systems and aid the cardiac and respiratory system of the sleeping infant, thus preventing SIDS.